Onboard control computers have become prevalent in motor vehicles, but as safety, economy, and emissions requirements have continued to tighten, vehicle systems and devices have not met the requirements set out in government regulations and the implicit demands of competitors' achievements. Successive generations of onboard control computers have acquired increasing data sensing and retention capability as the electronics have advanced.
Present external diagnostic and display apparatus, known as diagnostic tools, are commonly limited to reporting the data acquired by the onboard control computer itself. Increasingly, subtle subsystem failures in vehicles overload the ability of maintenance technicians, not simply to read the faults detected and stored by the diagnostic tools themselves, but to combine those readings with peripheral measurements and deduce corrective actions with both speed and accuracy.
Currently in the automotive industry, there are both stand alone and hand-held diagnostic testers or tools used in connection with motor vehicle maintenance and repair. For example, hand-held diagnostic tools have been used to trouble-shoot faults associated with vehicular control units. Diagnostic tools can detect faults based on Diagnostic Trouble Codes or DTCs that are set in the vehicle's onboard control computer. A DTC can be triggered and stored when there is a problem with the vehicle. A technician then retrieves the DTC using a diagnostic tool, repairs the associated problem and then deletes the DTC from the vehicle's computer.
Including and beyond diagnostic trouble codes, in general, diagnostic systems are used by technicians and professionals in virtually all industries to perform basic and advanced system testing functions. For example, in the automotive, trucking, heavy equipment and aircraft industries, diagnostic test systems provide for vehicle onboard computer fault or trouble code display as mentioned above, interactive diagnostics, multiscope and multimeter functions, and electronic service manuals. In the medical industry, diagnostic systems provide for monitoring body functions and diagnosis of medical conditions, as well as system diagnostics to detect anomalies in the medical equipment.
In many industries, diagnostic systems play an increasingly important role in manufacturing processes, as well as in maintenance and repair throughout the lifetime of the equipment or product. Some diagnostic systems are based on personal computer technology and feature user-friendly, menu-driven diagnostic applications. These systems assist technicians and professionals at all levels in performing system diagnostics on a real-time basis.
A typical diagnostic system includes a display on which instructions for diagnostic procedures are displayed. The system also includes a system interface that allows the operator to view real-time operational feedback and diagnostic information. Thus, the operator may view, for example, vehicle engine speed in revolutions per minute, or battery voltage during start cranking; or a patient's heartbeat rate or blood pressure. With such a system, a relatively inexperienced operator may perform advanced diagnostic procedures and diagnose complex operational or medical problems.
The diagnostic procedures for diagnostic systems of this sort are typically developed by experienced technical experts or professionals. The technical expert or professional provides the technical experience and knowledge required to develop complex diagnostic procedures. Thus, the efficacy of the diagnostic procedures, in particular the sequence in which the diagnostic procedures are performed, is highly dependent on the expertise of the technical expert or professional authoring the procedures.
When diagnostic tests are performed, a user must have certain tools to perform the test. However, it is difficult with current diagnostic systems to be properly prepared for such diagnostic tests. Usually if a user is mobile, the user may have to go back to his or her automobile to get additional tools to perform the test or repair. Further, it is difficult to check whether the user can actually perform the test and in an efficient manner. Therefore, the judgment is left to each individual user and their expertise. It is difficult to obtain consistency in the diagnostics and repair from one technician to another. There is a need to have a technique and system that will accommodate for a greater efficiency that is not dependent upon the technician performing the diagnostics and repairs. Further, there is a need to properly organize resources needed ahead of time to perform certain tests and diagnostic methods.